One cruel byproduct of the nation’s current economic woes is that citizens looking to public institutions for help often find those agencies unable to provide assistance in the same manner in which they did in the past. Budget cuts have prompted staff reductions, reduced operating hours and made it difficult for the institutions to purchase and to employ the technology resources that are vital to providing information in contemporary society. Libraries, unfortunately, are among the public institutions and services taking major hits.
There is a sad irony in that fact. At the very moment when more and more Americans are turning to public libraries in search of information – especially about employment and educational opportunities – static funding or precipitous declines in already scant appropriations are shrinking resources available to meet the growing demand. That is true here, across the state and across the nation.
According to a recent report from the American Library Association, 15 percent of all libraries and about 25 percent of urban libraries report reduced hours. More than 50 percent of urban libraries report insufficient staff to meet patron needs in critical areas. A majority of libraries – 56 percent – report either flat or decreased budgets for their current fiscal year. That’s up from about 40 percent last year. The toll is alarming, particularly since the number of Americans visiting and using libraries is on the ascent.
Indeed, the ALA reports that in January 2009, more than 25 million Americans used a public library more than 20 times during the previous year. That’s a double-digit increase over the previous three years. Surveys also indicate that the overall number of library patrons continued to rise throughout 2009 and into 2010.
Officials at the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Bicentennial Library say activity at the local system closely mirrors what has become the national norm – more users and more requests for professional assistance and guidance, but static appropriations to underwrite services.